If you really want to be honest about the wireless market, there hasn’t been much activity beyond voice, e-mail and text-messaging.
Sure, you can do lots of other things such as surf the Web but wireless has come no where near to matching its potential. For example, a recent Yankee Group study showed that only 13% of cellphone users in North America user their devices to surf the Web more than once a month while 70% of computer users go online every day.
“The user experience has been a disaster,” Tony Davis, managing partner with Toronto-based Brightspark, told the New York Times.
A lot of it has to do with the performance of wireless networks, which haven’t been fast enough, although that could change soon with the emergence of 4G and Wi-Max.
Nortel, which is enthusiastically pounding the Wi-Max table, did a survey to discover what consumers really want from wireless. Surprise, surprise, they found consumers want to do more with their wireless devices if only the technology would let them.
The three key findings are:
- While consumers do a lotwith their mobile devices beyond voice and simple text, they probably do a lot more (e.g. watch video and stream music) if they had access to faster wireless networks
- Young people want wireless social networking because these sites are how they stay connected with their friends. They want to be notified when friends are nearby, and be able to access services such as music and messaging.
- Users want Hyperconnectivity. They want everything that can be connected, to be connected for seamless access in devices, like cars, MP3 players and cameras, and they are willing to pay for it. [Editor's note: They want to pay for it? Really!]
For more of Nortel’s thoughts on wireless, check out CTO John Roese’s blog where he has a guest post by carrier networks VP Scott Wickware.
With the financial tsunami in housing collapse, foreclosures, institutional financial collapse around the globe, contraction of personal and corporate credit,
1. Who is going to invest in such a complete revamp of existing cellular systems, for personal or enterprise use, and
2. And people having to live down and cut discretionary spending to the bone … Wimax? Forget it.
3. Corporations will manage just fine without Wimax just as they have until now.
It is a wonderful technology with new and exciting uses, but its timing with the economic wall we’re fast approaching, it will pay little dividends until years from now. Sad for such a sink it was in development effort and cost.
Bill Baker
Here’s a new and revolutionary concept: STOP HYPING IT!!!! We get it; we just hope that Nortel bloggers will, hopefully soon…The more NT hypes 4G/Hyperconnectivity the longer that road to ‘recreating a great company’ is going to be.
Since WiMax does not offer any backward compatibility its business case is limited to only being a viable alternative to DSL or coax (cable)-based access. Last time I checked there were plenty of places around the globe that lacked either (or both); why not use WiMax there. Clearwire seems to be doing pretty well with such an application. However, if you insist on “doing some really cool $#!^ over wireless” then go get yourselves the iPhone. And let’s all get back to work now, shall we.
woodoo
Nortel needs to stop talking and start showing results. Hyperconnectivity is hype with no products or services in Nortel to support it – WIMAX is just another wireless access technology. Nortel needs to get rid of blowhards like John Roese and concentrate on giving some shareholder returns.
Casual Observer
I agree with Bubba. The largest consumer credit system in the world that has been driving the global economy is on the verge of collapse. Much of the next decade in the United States will end up as a debt servicing period as baby boomers begin collecting money that the government doesn’t have. Additionally Paulson’s plan to “save” homeowners will only prolong the problem and result in more systemic financial issues. The dollar’s fate is sealed as the globe’s leading reserve currency and export driven economies around the globe will suffer as a result of the downtuwn in the United States.
What Would You Do With Wireless?
If you really want to be honest about the wireless market, there hasn’t been much activity beyond voice, e-mail and text-messaging.
Sure, you can do lots of other things such as surf the Web but wireless has come no where near to matching its potential. For example, a recent Yankee Group study showed that only 13% of cellphone users in North America user their devices to surf the Web more than once a month while 70% of computer users go online every day.
“The user experience has been a disaster,” Tony Davis, managing partner with Toronto-based Brightspark, told the New York Times.
A lot of it has to do with the performance of wireless networks, which haven’t been fast enough, although that could change soon with the emergence of 4G and Wi-Max.
Nortel, which is enthusiastically pounding the Wi-Max table, did a survey to discover what consumers really want from wireless. Surprise, surprise, they found consumers want to do more with their wireless devices if only the technology would let them.
The three key findings are:
- While consumers do a lotwith their mobile devices beyond voice and simple text, they probably do a lot more (e.g. watch video and stream music) if they had access to faster wireless networks
- Young people want wireless social networking because these sites are how they stay connected with their friends. They want to be notified when friends are nearby, and be able to access services such as music and messaging.
- Users want Hyperconnectivity. They want everything that can be connected, to be connected for seamless access in devices, like cars, MP3 players and cameras, and they are willing to pay for it. [Editor's note: They want to pay for it? Really!]
For more of Nortel’s thoughts on wireless, check out CTO John Roese’s blog where he has a guest post by carrier networks VP Scott Wickware.
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